


Safewords

by Makani



Series: The Kinks Of Love [3]
Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Post-Coital, Romance, Safewords, mention of D/s
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-22
Updated: 2012-07-22
Packaged: 2017-11-10 12:17:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 638
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/466172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Makani/pseuds/Makani
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sherlock needs to have answers while John just wants to bask in the afterglow of a good shag..</p>
            </blockquote>





	Safewords

**Author's Note:**

> I just wanted to say that while everything that's part of this series should make sense as a stand-alone, it probably makes even more sense if you read them all, possibly chronologically. Anyway, if you only want to read the fluff it should still work ;) As always, let me know if you like this please :)

“John?” 

“Hmm?” John replied groggily. He wasn’t sure if he could form coherent sentences yet, the post-coital haze a million times stronger than it had ever been before. Well, to be fair, he had never been made to come this many times in a row before either.

Sadly, Sherlock wasn’t nearly as worn out as he was and had obviously decided it was time for the questioning to begin.

“Why Coq au Vin?” He asked curiously.

“Huh?” John had no idea what the detective was talking about and frankly wasn’t inclined to really focus on the question. 

“You chose it as a safeword. Why?” 

“God Sh’lock, do we need to do this now? ‘m knackered…” John mumbled into his pillow.

The younger man made an annoyed noise.

“I tried to deduce it, but the only thing I can come up with was that I made it when I wanted to talk to you, and I’m not sure why that would entice you to use it as a safety net. It’s just a chicken stew really…” Sherlock was obviously frustrated by his inability to figure it out by himself.

“Its just sentiment Sherlock, don’t worry about it…” John didn’t add the ‘you wouldn’t understand’ at the end of it, but the detective had quite obviously picked it up anyway.

“Explain it.” He demanded. Sherlock apparently felt the need to understand this. “I’m trying to get better at reading your… feelings” He said it as if feelings were still a little distasteful to him. “Most of the time they are obvious and I can react, but I don’t understand your obsession with dinner.”

“It’s not an obsession, Sherlock. In fact the only one obsessing about it is you, I just chose it as a safeword.” John was slowly starting to feel a little more awake.

“I want to know why.” The detective’s voice sounded petulant now and the older man couldn’t suppress the smile. If there was anything his lover couldn’t stand it was ignorance.

“Well, let’s see…” John thought for a moment to try to make his statement as clear as possible. Sherlock didn’t appreciate ambiguity. “When we first started talking about our sexual preferences I felt very uncomfortable, as you rightly pointed out. When you cooked dinner that evening you wanted me to feel better about it. Have I got that right?”

Sherlock gave a grunt that could be interpreted as affirmative. 

“Well, it made me feel like you cared, like I was safe with you. It wasn’t so much the Coq au Vin, it was the gesture that mattered to me. You put effort into helping me. So the dish became somewhat of a metaphor for me, I suppose. I chose it as a safeword because I didn’t want something random. Other people might go for colours, such as red for stop and that’s fine, but it feels like the colour is keeping them safe. I didn’t want that. You have to keep me safe. I trust you, not an abstract concept. So it had to be something that I associated with both you and safety. Coq au Vin just seemed ideal.”

There was a long silence when John had finished explaining and the doctor suddenly realised that he might have misinterpreted Sherlock’s reasons for cooking that day. But when Sherlock finally spoke again, his voice sounded rough with emotion.

“Nobody has ever trusted me like this. I wanted you to feel more comfortable, but I didn’t think…” His voice stuttered to a halt as if unsure how to continue.

John snuggled closer to him.

“I trust you, Sherlock Holmes. I trust you with my life and I trust you with my heart.”

“I’m not sure that’s wise.” The detective’s voice sounded unsure.

“Well I am. Sure that is. I love you.”

“I love you too, John”


End file.
